So, How’s the Market, December, 2018 – Normalizing to Equalization.

2018 Real Estate in Denver. Normalizing to Equalization.

All data taken from ReColorado, on December 15, 2018. Denver, Colorado.

Average Price of both Single-Family homes and Condominium Homes Year over Year To Date was $464,950 vs. $427,886 in 2017. We are starting see prices flattening as there was a rise of 6.4% increase year over year which is slower than the previous year and still somewhat unsustainable moving into 2019.

Inventory for December 2018 decreased 38.7% over December 2017. The number seems more shocking, but to better understand the increase it went from 4589 total units to 6367 total units, which historically is a very low number as it indicates a 1.5 month supply of homes through the 8 county Denver metro area. Six months supply would be an equilibrium of inventory.

The number of homes closed in November 2018 was 3,724 compared to 4,441 in November 2017 or a 16% decrease in closings. This signifies the buyer pool has started to shrink creating a more normal cycle of buying vs. the frenzy of the past three years.

Days on the Market is 31 days which is about the same as 12 months earlier. However, the number of homes placed under contract in November 2018 is down over 2017 by 9.2%. This means December and January closings will be less than the previous years.

The median price of a single-family home in Denver has risen 8% year over year to $405,000. This is an unsustainable number and prices will slow down moving forward.

The anticipated slowdown of housing sales in the 4th quarter is happening as predicted earlier in the year. With the warm weather in Denver in November and December and the potential of very slight increases in mortgage interest rates for the early part of 2019, the real estate market is liable to continue with the slower number of sales as exhibited in 2018. Also, the availability of lending options for people is growing and although we do not see money getting cheaper, we most certainly will see more financing options for self-employed and entrepreneurs in 2019 for obtaining financing for residential real estate.

As we finish the 2018 calendar year we wish you and your families a very Happy Holidays and prosperous new year. Our 2018 Year End Review will be out approximately January 25th, 2019.